Ephesians 5:25-28

New International Version (NIV)

25 Husbands, love your wives, just as
Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her26 to
make her holy, cleansing[a] her by the
washing with water through the word,27 and
to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any
other blemish, but holy and blameless.28 In
this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who
loves his wife loves himself.

We are told to love our wives just as Christ loved the
church.He loved the church so much that
he gave himself up for it.He sacrificed
his life for the church and expects us to do the same for our wives.I found this article that talks about this
topic and I thought the following paragraph was really good.

“And let’s be clear about something
else. Many of us, when considering the idea of giving our life for our spouse,
think about jumping in front of a bullet for them. Or we envision some
hypothetical situation where we sacrifice ourselves to save them. That’s good,
but we often miss the much more common – and more difficult – way we are called
to give our lives for them. It isn’t in some hypothetical situation that we
find in action movies. It’s what we are faced with every single morning when we
wake up. It’s the everyday, ordinary ways we serve them. It’s always having
them at the center of your thoughts and intentions. It’s waking up in the
morning and thinking about your wife before you think about yourself. Serving
her in every little thing you do before serving yourself. It’s radical – just
like the vows you made.”

Luke 22:42

42 “Father, if you are willing, take this
cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”

Jesus obviously didn’t really want
to go to the cross, but he laid aside what he really wanted to do and did what
was required of him.

Here’s how I think this applies to us.We are called to sacrifice ourselves for our wives, whatever that
entails.It may not be what we really
want, but the needs of our wives need to come before our needs and wants.That could mean a lot of things.
It could mean that if your wife needs or desires something then we make sure
that she gets whatever that is.Even if
it means that we have to do without something that we need or desire.

If your wife needs time away then provide it for her. Even if it means
letting her spend some time out with friends and you taking care of the kids.

If your wife needs help with the house, then do it.Sacrifice some time and whatever your idea of
what a man’s job is and help her with the dishes, cleaning, laundry, or
whatever needs to be done.

If your wife needs more of you then make some sacrifices.That could mean less time with our buddies,
less time at the range, less time fishing or hunting, less time playing golf. I
think this quote from Rick Warren really applies here.

“The best use of life is love. The best expression of love is time. The best
time to love is now.”
― Rick Warren

The list could go on and on.

I think we will find that if we start sacrificing our desires that we can
fulfill the need and desires of our wives then it will be well worth the
sacrifice.We will probably find that
are willing to make some sacrifices for us as well.

So guys let’s step up for our wives and make the sacrifices that she needs.

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

It's been a long time since I posted a blog. I recently started a men's group on Facebook. I created it to encourage and challenge the men in the group.Well recently I've had 1 Corinthians 11:1 on my
heart.
1 Corinthians 11:1
Amplified Bible (AMP)
11 Pattern yourselves after me [follow my example], as I imitate and follow Christ (the Messiah).

So I'm posting several small studies on how this verse applies to us leading our families.

Family Servants

Philippians
2:6-7

New International Version (NIV)

6 Who, being in very nature[a] God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used
to his own advantage;7 rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature[b] of a servant,
being made in human likeness.

John
13:3-5

Amplified Bible (AMP)

3 [That] Jesus, knowing (fully aware) that the Father had put
everything into His hands, and that He had come from God and was [now]
returning to God,

4 Got up from supper, took off His garments, and taking a
[servant’s] towel, He fastened it around His waist.

5 Then He poured water into the washbasin and began to wash
the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the [servant’s] towel with which He
was girded.

If Jesus is our ultimate example then
we need to follow his lead.

Philippians 2:5

New International Version (NIV)

5 In your relationships with one
another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

To
be the men that our family needs we need to become servant leaders to them.

So what is a servant leader?

In the Greek the word for servant is duolos which means.

a slave, bondman, man of servile
condition

a slave

metaph., one who gives himself up
to another's will those whose service is used by Christ in extending and
advancing his cause among men

devoted to another to the
disregard of one's own interests

a servant, attendant

The Hebrew word for leader is
"nagiyd." It pictures a person under authority who fulfills the
wishes of that authority. God wants leaders who will listen to His will and
execute it faithfully with divinely appointed authority. The related Greek word
for leadership is "diakonia." This literally means serving at tables.

Servant leadership is both a
leadership philosophy and set of leadership practices. Traditional leadership
generally involves the accumulation and exercise of power by one at the “top of
the pyramid.” By comparison, the servant-leader shares power, puts the needs of
others first and helps people develop and perform as highly as possible.

Scholars generally agree that these
characteristics are central to the development of a servant-leader:

Listening: A servant leader puts the emphasis
upon listening effectively to others.

26 But this is not to be so with
you; on the contrary, let him who is the greatest among you become like the
youngest, and him who is the chief and leader like one who serves.

"A Godly Leader finds strength by realizing his
weakness, finds authority by being under authority, finds direction by laying
down his own plans, finds vision by seeing the needs of others, finds
credibility by being an example, finds loyalty by expressing compassion, finds
honor by being faithful, finds greatness by being a servant." --Roy Lessin

According to John Maxwell

“True leadership cannot be awarded, appointed, or
assigned. It comes only from influence, and that can’t be mandated.
It must be earned. The only thing a title can buy is a little time –
either to increase your level of influence with others or to erase it.”

So men lets step up step up into our roles as servant
leaders.Our families are waiting for us
to.

About Me

Let's see what to write about myself. I'm married, currently living in Arlington, Tx. Hopefully soon we will be adoptive parents. My free time is usually spent fishing, on the net, or reading. I played guitar in the band Bloodwork for about a year, which was a lot of fun. My wife and I are very active at our church. I'm also the sound guy and put together all the powerpoint presentations,